Author Webpage

In the meantime, while you're here, pull up a chair, pour yourself a cup of coffee or a cuppa tea, have a piece of pie and always feel free to speak your mind, and your heart, here at Meanderings and Muses.

Wednesday, August 24, 2011

The Past Revisited by Margaret Maron

Born and bred in North Carolina where the piedmont meets the sandhills, I grew up on a modest two-mule tobacco farm that has been in the family for over a hundred years.

Tobacco is no longer grown on the farm, but the memories linger - the singing, the laughter, the gossip that went on at the bench as those rank green leaves came from the field, the bliss of an icy cold drink bottle pressed to a hot sweaty face, getting up at dawn to help "take out" a barn, the sweet smell of soft golden leaves as they're being readied for auction. Working in tobacco is one of those life experiences I'm glad to have had. I'm even gladder that it's something I'll never have to do again.

After high school came two years of college until a summer job at the Pentagon led to marriage, a tour of duty in Italy, then several years in my husband's native Brooklyn. I had always loved writing and for the first few years, wrote nothing but short stories and very bad poetry. (The legendary Ruth Cavin of St. Martin's Press once characterized my verses as "doggerel. But inspired doggerel.")

Eventually, I backed into writing novels about NYPD Lt. Sigrid Harald, mysteries set against the New York City art world. But love of my native state and a desire to write out of current experiences led to the creation of District Court Judge Deborah Knott, the opinionated daughter of a crusty old ex-bootlegger and youngest sibling of eleven older brothers. (I was one of only three, so no, I'm not writing about my own family.)

We've been back on a corner of the family land for many years now. My city-born husband discovered he prefers goldfinches, rabbits, and the occasional quiet deer to yellow cabs, concrete, and a city that never sleeps. A son, a daughter-in-law, and two granddaughters are icing on our cake.

Once upon a time in the not-too-far past, publishers used to have warehouses where they stored their print overruns and bookstore returns. It was not unusual to keep unsold books for 25 or 30 years before finally sending them to that great pulp mill in the sky.

Then, in 1979 Congress passed an inventory tax law. Its aim was to close a corporate tax dodge and make it more expensive to carry a large inventory from year to year. As with so many of Congress’s laws, there were unintended consequences. Congress had not meant to destroy publishers’ warehouses or authors’ backlists, but that’s exactly what happened. Despite heartbroken pleas to exempt publishers, the tax was applied to them, too, and you know what happens when bottom lines crashes head-on with the public good. The warehouses emptied out and backlists went into oblivion.

With the advent of electronic readers such as Kindle, Nook, and the iPad and SmartPhones, however, the backlist lives again. No longer does an early book have to vanish down that bottomless rabbit-hole, never to be seen again.

My first novel, One Coffee With, was published in 1981, an astonishing (to me, anyhow) thirty years ago. It introduced Lt. Sigrid Harald, NYPD, 5’10, mid-thirties, single, skinny, hair worn in a frumpy bun, no clothes sense, uncomfortable in her skin, and totally incompetent when it came to personal relationships. But she had a wry sense of humor few people suspected, cool silvery eyes, and an unerring knack for solving murders.

The eighth and last in the series, Fugitive Colors, was published fourteen years later—fourteen years for me, but only one short tumultuous year for Sigrid. She begins in early April and ends the following April. During that year, she learns to accept herself and the possibility of love, she cuts her hair, she buys a book to learn about makeup (typical Sigrid behavior), she gains a gay housemate who wants to pick her brains so that he can write a mystery, and she learns the true story of her father, who died when she was barely more than a toddler.

Leif Harald was a police detective, too, and was killed in the line of duty. At least that’s the official story. The circumstances surrounding his death form a mystery that arches over the entire series, with the reader learning a little more in each book.

When they were first published, the books got good reviews, but never seemed to find their audience. The average reader tended to take her at face value, to see only the surface and not what I had hinted was underneath. They went out of print as quickly as they were published. Now, fifteen years after the last one saw daylight, they are going up online as eBooks and I am delighted with the feedback as my readers have finally begun to “get” her. (One wrote to me, “I began the series not liking Sigrid because she was so different from Deborah Knott, your other series character, but I finished the last book in tears because there are no more.”)

In getting the books ready to be digitized, I have had to re-read them and it’s been an odd experience. A writer is seldom happy with the finished product. As someone once said, “a creative work is never finished; it’s abandoned.” There were patches of roughness I wanted to correct, motivations I wanted to strengthen, and outdated attitudes that jumped out at me. It was a real temptation to rewrite and bring everything up to date. But you start down that road at a perilous cost and in the end, I contented myself with smoothing a couple of cowlicks and tucking in a shirttail or two.

Over and over, I kept bumping up against things that have changed. Thirty years ago, a female officer would find it tough to take over a homicide squad, male chauvinism was rampant, and secretaries were still expected to fetch the coffee, and tattoos were definitely not the norm for “nice” people.

When the series begins, Sigrid is typing her reports on a typewriter, by the last book it’s on a computer, yet we never see her taking a computer class during that single year. Pregnant women smoked and drank alcohol without anyone waving a finger at them, she couldn’t know the sex of her unborn baby unless a doctor stuck a needle in her abdomen and drew out some of the amniotic fluid. Cell phones were nonexistent in that first book. No Internet. No CDs or DVDs. People could buy airline tickets and board at the last minute without having to go through security or show a photo ID.

The list goes on and on.

Happily, love and greed are timeless and there is always someone ready to kill for one or the other.

Or for both.

What about you? Does it bother you to realize that your past is now “historical”? Do the differences between the recent past and current present interfere with your enjoyment of a book?

10 comments:

I didn't discover the Sigrid novels until after I had discovered you and Deborah. Then, like everyone else, I fell in love with her and quickly gobbled up the series and yes, I'm still hoping for more. I'm thrilled they'll now be available in electronic form. If that's what it takes to keep books by our favorite authors alive, I am all for it.

In answer to your question "Do the differences between the recent past and current present interfere with your enjoyment of a book?" Not in the least! If a book is well written, I don't think those things take anything away from the story.

Oh, I'm so delighted to know that I can get the rest of the Sigrid Harald books on my Kindle! I just finished re-reading FUGITIVE COLORS and ONE COFFEE WITH and am now in the middle of BABY DOLL GAMES. Third time through for all of these much worn paperbacks. I'm thrilled that now I can fill in the blanks.

I don't know why Sigrid resonates so with me. I've only been to NYC twice in my life (fifty years ago) and my experience (tobacco farm, etc.) is much closer to Deborah Knott's. But there's something about Sigrid.. . even if it is 'historical' fiction now.

I don't mind reading "historic" novels, even if I chuckle occasionally at the language or how things have changed. In fact, it can often be a nice break from modern times (iPhones and Facebook and Twitter, oh my!)

Margaret, it's great to know there's another character you created that I will love as much as Deborah Knott. The Sigrid novels sounds great. I like the fact that you didn't modernize them. I enjoy books that remind me of what was not so long ago.

Kaye, thanks for hosting Margaret. Deborah is one of my favorite characters and it seems I've found another one to enjoy.

Thanks for the warm welcome, Kaye, and I so appreciate all the other comments. I don't own an eBook reader yet, but I know I will one of these days. Once the "physical" book is no longer available -- and who ever thought we'd be referring to books that way? -- we're so fortunate that we can still read them.

IT'S ALL RELATIVE

WOMEN'S SPACES WOMEN'S PLACES

CLOTHES LINES from 75 Western North Carolina Women Writers

CLOTHES LINES from 75 Western North Carolina Women Writers

I'm a lover of words and a lover of images.

The photos you see in the blog posts were mostly shot by me or by husband Donald. Or, they're old family photos - a lovely little benefit of being a part of families who recognized the beauty of preserving our history through photography.

If the photos are not ours, I have tried whenever possible to caption or link the photos to their source. This hasn't always been possible as there are a lot of uncredited images available through the internet.

My sincere thanks to the generosity of so many talented photographers who so graciously share their work for so many of us to enjoy, share and learn from.

IF you see a photo here that is a copyright infringement, please send me an email (barleykw @ appstate dot com) and I'll remove it immediately.

Books Read

Every year I promise myself I'm going to keep a log of books I'm reading. And I immediately forget. Then I remember again, but only after I've already read a few books, but can't be sure I'll remember them all and so - - can't bring myself to start the list. It's sort of like missing the first 30 minutes of a movie. I just can't watch it if I've missed the beginning. And being the anal ol' soul I am, I can't bring myself to start a list if I can't be sure it's going to be a complete one.So.I decided to keep a list during 2010 and found it to be a fun thing. Especially for a compulsive list-maker like myself.

A WELL-BEHAVED WOMAN: A NOVEL OF THE VANDERBILTS by Therese Anne Fowler (ARC)

The Bar Harbor Retirement Home for Famous Writers (And Their Muses) by Terri-Lynne DeFino (ARC)

UNDER MY SKIN by Lisa Unger (ARC)

NOVEMBER ROAD by Lou Berney (ARC)

SUMMER ON THE RIVER by Marcia Willett (ARC)

BRING ME BACK by B. A. Paris

DIARY OF A BOOKSELLER by Shaun Bythell

GOOD SAM by Dete Meserve

THE SPACE BETWEEN by Dete Meserve (ARC)

THE REALIST: A Novel of Berenice Abbott by Sarah Coleman

IMPOSTOR'S LURE by Carla Neggers (ARC)

PARIS ECHO by Sebastian Faulks (ARC)

REMEMBRANCE OF THINGS PARIS: SIXTY YEARS OF WRITING FROM GOURMET edited by Ruth Reichl

VISIBLE EMPIRE by Hannah Pittard

THE ART OF INHERITING SECRETS by Barbara O'Neal ( ARC)

THE PARIS APARTMENT by Juliet Gauvin

THE LONDON FLAT by Juliet Gauvin

THE IRISH COTTAGE by Juliet Gauvin

THE THINGS WE DON'T SAY by Ella Carey (ARC)

THE VERY PICTURE OF YOU by Isabel Wolff

BY INVITATION ONLY by Dorothea Benton Frank

NO GOOD ASKING by Fran Kimmel (ARC)

THE SUMMER NANNY by Holly Chamberlin (ARC)

A COLLAR FOR CERBERUS by Matt Stanley (ARC)

THE CLOCKMAKER'S DAUGHTER by Kate Morton (ARC)

SLEEPING IN THE GROUND by Peter Robinson

TRUST ME by Hank Phillippi Ryan (ARC)

THE FRENCH FOR CHRISTMAS by Fiona Valpy

THE FRENCH FOR LOVE by Fiona Valpy

THE FRENCH FOR ALWAYS by Fiona Valpy

THE BEEKEEPER'S PROMISE by Fiona Valpy (ARC)

WHITE HOUSES by Amy Bloom (ARC)

THE SCRAPBOOK OF FRANKIE PRATT by Caroline Preston

THE RED NOTEBOOK by Antoine Laurain

THE GUILTY DEAD by P. J. Tracy (ARC)

THE MURALIST by B. A. Shapiro

THE ART FORGER by B. A. Shapiro

THE NIGHTINGALE by Kristin Hannah

PARIS MENDS BROKEN HEARTS by Kaya Quinsey

THE GREAT ALONE by Kristin Hannah

APRIL IN PARIS, 1921 by Tessa Lunney (ARC)

THE ITALIAN PARTY by Christina Lynch (ARC)

THE SILVER SHOES by Jill G. Hall (ARC)

THE DEATH OF MRS. WESTAWAY by Ruth Ware (ARC)

THE MASTERPIECE by Fiona Davis (ARC)

THE RAIN WATCHER by Tatiana de Rosnay (ARC)

LESS: A NOVEL by Andrew Sean Greer

THE LOST FOR WORDS BOOKSHOP by Stephanie Butland (ARC)

LULLABY ROAD by James Anderson

OUR PARIS: SKETCHES FROM MEMORY by Edmund White

IN THE SHADOW OF 10,000 HILLS by Jennifer Haupt (ARC)

SHORECLIFF by Ursula DeYoung

HALF A MIND by Wendy Hornsby

NO HARM by Wendy Hornsby

THE BOOKSHOP OF YESTERDAYS by Amy Meyerson (ARC)

The Portrait of Molly Dean by Katherine Kovacic (ARC)

The Art of the Wasted Day by Patricia Hampl

TEXT ME WHEN YOU GET HOME by Kayleen Schaefer

TIN MAN by Sarah Winman (ARC)

THE PARAMOUR'S DAUGHTER by Wendy Hornsby

IN THE GUISE OF MERCY by Wendy Hornsby

77th Street Requiem by Wendy Hornsby

BAD INTENT by Wendy Hornsby

MIDNIGHT BABY by Wendy Hornsby

MY EXAGGERATED LIFE - PAT CONROY by Katherine Clark

BEACH HOUSE REUNION by Mary Alice Monroe (ARC)

TELLING LIES by Wendy Hornsby

THE HANGING by Wendy Hornsby

THE COLOR OF LIGHT by Wendy Hornsby

NUMBER 7, RUE JACOB by Wendy Hornsby (ARC)

TANGERINE by Christine Mangan (ARC)

THE CAST by Amy Blumenfeld (ARC)

SAILING LESSONS by Hannah McKinnon (ARC)

THE BISHOP'S PAWN by Steve Berry (ARC)

COLD GRAVE by Craig Robertson

SNAPSHOT by Craig Robertson

RANDOM by Craig Robertson

THE PHOTOGRAPHER by Craig Robertson

PARIS EVER AFTER by KSR Burns (ARC)

THE HOUSE ON HARBOR HILL by Shelly Stratton (ARC)

SUNBURN by Laura Lippman

MIDNIGHT RIOT by Ben Aaronovitch

WHAT HAPPENED THAT NIGHT by Sandra Block (ARC )

NOT THAT I COULD TELL by Jessica Strawser (ARC)

THE HIGH TIDE CLUB by Mary Kay Andrews (ARC)

THE WESTERN STAR by Craig Johnson

MY PARIS DREAM by Kate Betts

PARIS FOR ONE by Jojo Moyes

THE POSSIBLE WORLD by Liese O'Halloran Schwarz (ARC)

SULFUR SPRINGS by William Kent Krueger

THURSDAY'S CHILD by Joseph Wurtenbaugh

THE MEMORY OF LEMON by Judith Fertig

GIVE ME YOUR HAND by Megan Abbott (ARC)

A NANTUCKET WEDDING by Nancy Thayer (ARC)

DARK IN DEATH by J.D. Robb

AFTER NIGHTFALL by A. J. Banner (ARC)

THE HIGH SEASON by Judy Blundell (ARC)

YEAR ONE by Nora Roberts

LOVE AND RUIN by Paula McLain (ARC)

GO ASK FANNIE by Elisabeth Hyde (ARC)

THE SOMETIMES SISTERS by Carolyn Brown (ARC)

HOW IT HAPPENED by Michael Koryta (ARC)

THE PIANO SHOP ON THE LEFT BANK by Thad Carhart

HALF MOON BAY by Alice LaPlante (ARC)

THE REUNION by Samantha Hayes (ARC)

PARIS STILL LIFE by Rosalind Brackenbury (ARC)

THE POT THIEF WHO STUDIED EDWARD ABBEY by J. Michael Orenduff (ARC)

CAME BACK TO SHOW YOU I COULD FLY by Robin Klein

RARE OBJECTS by Kathleen Tessaro

SOUVENIR (object lessons) by Rolf Potts (ARC)

DEAD HOUSE by Billy O'Callaghan (ARC)

"A" is for Alibi by Sue Grafton

BELLMAN & BLACK: A NOVEL by Diane Setterfield

FTC Disclosure Notice

FTC has a regulation which went into effect in December, 2009 which says, basically - "Amateur Bloggers to Disclose Freebies or Be Fined." Significantly fined. So. Since I happen to be an amateur blogger who sometimes receives free books, here's my required FTC Disclosure Notice: Dear FTC - Regarding review copies of books obtained for this blog. No other compensation is accepted beyond review copies of books - ever. When I do write a review, or opinion, the source of the book cited will be disclosed in the post in which the review/opinon appears. If you have questions, please feel free to contact me.